I chuckled when the eBay buyer sent me these pictures yesterday along with the comment, “Should have been packaged better.”
First of all, what did the United States Postal Service put this box through on it’s journey from my town to California? How many heavy boxes would have been stacked on top of this one to crush it like this?
I’ll bet you’re wondering what was inside this box. It was a large ceramic plate for tortilla chips, with a smaller dish for salsa. I wrapped each in three layers of bubble wrap. After placing it in the box, I stuffed more bubble wrap around the sides to keep it from shifting around. I was certain that it would have a nice, comfy ride from my home to theirs.
However, I had no idea that someone would run over it with a forklift. Or close it in the cargo door of the plane. Or stand on it to reach something up on a shelf. Or sit on it for lunch break.
As bad as the box looks, the contents were intact. Well, almost. The small dish had a piece broken off an edge. The larger plate survived the trip with no damage. I would call that a pretty good packing job. Actually, looking at the pictures again, I would call it a miracle.
What could I have done differently? I suppose I could have put the box inside a box, cushioned with a million styrofoam packing peanuts. Do they even sell those any more?
The buyer had paid $25 to ship a $10 tray. I refunded his money. A couple of drops of superglue and he’ll be munching chips and salsa and throwing back margaritas for Cinco de Mayo in no time.
Waite for it... 